


Counting Stars

by eternalscout



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-22
Updated: 2017-04-22
Packaged: 2018-10-22 15:10:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,883
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10699566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eternalscout/pseuds/eternalscout
Summary: Remus is struggling to fit in at Hogwarts. Lily won't let that happen on her watch.





	Counting Stars

Remus wasn’t there to make friends. He wasn’t there to have fun. Albus Dumbledore had given him a tremendous opportunity when he’d allowed him to attend Hogwarts and Remus wasn’t about to waste it. As much as his parents tried to shelter him from the negative aspects of his lycanthropy, he wasn’t as naive as they wanted to think. He might have only been eleven, but he’d matured quickly.

Even so, he found himself longingly watching the other students in his year. He’d missed the Sorting Ceremony and the first night the First Years had spent together in the castle. By the time he’d been released from the Hospital Wing by Madam Pomfrey, friendships had begun to blossom without him. His frequent absences only compounded everything. His concerns people would figure out he was a werewolf quickly faded when he realized no one seemed to notice or care when he was gone.

The one thing he did have going for him was his grades. He spent less time in the classroom than his peers, but he had far more time to devote to studying. Even the teachers who hated werewolves and didn’t think he should be there had begrudgingly given him top marks on all of his assignments. No one said they hated him outright, of course. He didn’t need them to because he didn’t miss any of the false smiles or belligerent looks sent his way.

Sometimes he felt like the only people who wanted him at Hogwarts were Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall. Thankfully they did what they could to make up for the way he was treated by the rest of the faculty. Remus had been instructed to bring any ill treatment to their attention, but he kept his mouth shut. If his professors hated him now, he failed to see how getting them in trouble with the Headmaster would help.

No. Remus kept his head down, his thoughts and opinions to himself, and his letters to his parents full of how many friends he had and how much fun he was having. If his parents could sense the lies, they didn’t say so.

The night before had been a particularly rough full moon. Luckily it had been a Friday night, so he hadn’t missed any classes. He’d spent most of Saturday in the Hospital Wing where Madam Pomfrey tutted over him for hours before not looking at all pleased when he asked if he could return to the Gryffindor Tower.

Reaching the Gryffindor Common Room, Remus didn’t expect many people to still be milling around. Curfew kept most of the students on a fairly predictable sleep schedule. He stepped into the circular room, gradually taking in the empty armchairs and tables. It was silent aside from the crackling of the ever present fire. With his acute hearing, one of the very few positives about his condition, he could almost make out the voices coming from the dormitories beyond.

Remus released a slow breath, debating whether or not he wanted to go to bed. He was exhausted, but Potter and Black weren’t likely to let him sleep any time soon. While he wasn’t included in their conversations or hijinks, he would’ve had to be deaf and blind to get any sleep while the two of them were conspiring.

At least that’s what he told himself as he settled in one of the overstuffed red armchairs. Truthfully, he didn’t want to have to pretend like it didn’t bother him that he was the only person the two of them never spoke to. Being a First Year should have guaranteed them little in the way of popularity. Remus didn’t know if it was because of their lineage or their sheer confidence that they’d managed to rise quickly through the social ranks despite their age.

Shifting where he sat, he pulled his legs up, turning sideways in the chair. It was a tight fit. He dug out the book he’d gotten from the library on his way to the Hospital Wing once he was comfortable. He loved school, but his favorite subject so far was Defense Against the Dark Arts. He voraciously read anything he could find regarding werewolves in particular. There were a few interesting facts every so often. Unfortunately every book he’d come across was more interested in explaining  how to kill werewolves or why werewolves should be treated like the animals they were. Needless to say, They didn’t offer much for someone more interested in handling their own lycanthropy.

Remus had originally picked up this book because it had a section on werewolves in it. It was nothing he hadn’t read before. The rest of the book, however, was devoted to other magical creatures, particularly how to handle them and protect yourself against them. The section on boggarts utterly fascinated him.

He was so enthralled that he didn’t notice there was someone standing beside his chair until they politely cleared their throat. He jumped, head quickly swiveling in their direction. Lily Evans offered him a small smile that actually reached her bright green eyes. The corners of Remus’s mouth twitched upward in response. 

He hadn’t really spoken to Lily, but he had observed her like he had everyone else. She was kind to a fault and one of the smartest witches in their year, if not the entire school. Remus had seen her infect others with her vivaciousness. He’d never expected to experience it first hand. He shifted in his seat, turning to her like a flower would toward the sun.

“Are you alright?” she asked. She still smiled, but her expression grew more concerned.

Remus blinked, thrown by the question. “What?”

“I noticed you were out again. I wanted to make sure you were okay. You know, since your mum has been so ill.”

His eyes widened as he stared up at her. Her face flushed and her gaze dropped to her slippers.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pried. I was worried since you were out so often and I asked Professor Dumbledore if something was wrong. I should’ve come to you first.”

He quickly shook his head, sitting up properly in the chair. 

“Oh, no. It’s fine. I mean, she’s fine. I just...try to visit her when I can. Especially when she’s feeling poorly.”

She reached out, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. “I can’t imagine how difficult it must be. That’s sweet of you, to go and help look after her.”

Remus’s stomach twisted with guilt at his lie, but he nodded. It wasn’t as if he could tell her  the truth. The thought of Lily’s inevitable revulsion, if she knew what he was, devastated him. If someone like her could hate him, what hope did he have outside of his parents, McGonagall, and Dumbledore?

“What are you reading?” she asked, releasing his shoulder and gesturing to the book.

“Oh! Um. It’s actually an old textbook. I mean, the information is a little outdated, but it’s kind of like…” He trailed off, trying to put what he wanted to say into words. “I like learning how things were done based on the knowledge people had at the time. Some of the information and recommendations might be off, but I feel like there’s some stuff that’s still useful and that might not be as widely taught nowadays.”

Lily’s face lit up, rather than her eyes glazing over like he’d expected. “Oh? That sounds really interesting! I might have to borrow it once you’re done.”

Remus felt his face inexplicably warm. “Um… Sure. I mean, it’s from the library. I’m a fast reader though.”

“I know. You don’t say much in class, but I’m always kind of competing with you.”

“Competing with me?”

She laughed. “It’s silly, but you’re so smart. It makes me want to push myself and see if I can do as well or better than you do.”

He gaped at her. “ _ I’m _ smart? You run circles around me!”

Her face went scarlet and she gave an embarrassed shake of her head. 

“Well, now that I know that, I’m just going to have to try harder,” Remus offered.

“I never should’ve told you!” she said with mock chagrin.

She startled a laugh out of Remus. It was difficult to say which of them was more surprised by the sound.

“Um… Anyway,” Lily said, digging into her pocket. After a moment, she pulled out a small bar of chocolate.

Remus blinked as she held it out to him. It wasn’t Honeydukes like he expected. Instead, he sucked in a sharp breath when he saw that it was a Galaxy Ripple. He tentatively took it from her.

“What’s this for?” he hazarded.

“Well, I might be wrong, but I was pretty sure I’ve seen you using a pen instead of a quill sometimes. I figured if that was the case, you were probably at least half Muggle. My mum sent me a few bars today. I thought you might like one. Both of my parents are Muggles.”

For a brief moment, Remus felt like he’d forgotten how to speak. His throat threatened to close up and he was alarmed to feel his eyes starting to burn. He quickly got a handle on himself.

“I’m half Muggle,” he said, voice still a bit thick.

If Lily noticed, she didn’t say anything. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, taking a seat in the armchair beside his. She pulled another bar from her pocket.

“You’re sure you want me to have this?” Remus asked. 

“Of course I’m sure. And now that I know that you’re half Muggle, I’d like to be friends. It’s not like there are many people here who understand, you know? Or who are as smart as you.”

He nodded, watching as she unwrapped her bar.

“What are you waiting for?” she prompted. “Eat it! Chocolate always makes everything better.”

He certainly wasn’t going to argue with that. Remus unwrapped his bar, taking a bite at the same time she did. It had been a while since he’d had a Ripple and he sighed contentedly once he’d chewed and swallowed.

“...you really want to be friends?” he asked in the aftermath.

Lily snorted softly. “Of course I want to be friends. We can study together and talk about important non-Wizardy things. Like telly programmes.”

Remus didn’t know if it was the chocolate or Lily, but the somber mood he’d been in had dissipated completely. He actually felt  _ happy _ . Not that he hadn’t necessarily been happy before, but it had been a while since he felt  _ this _ happy. It was almost overwhelming.

“Remus?”

He blinked, returning the full of his attention to her.

“Are you going to be my friend or not?”

This time when he laughed, neither of them were surprised. “Of course I’ll be your friend. I certainly can’t say no to someone who plies me with chocolate.”

“Good!”

That said, Lily resumed enjoying her chocolate bar. Remus was quick to follow. By the time they finished chatting and parted ways to go to bed, he didn’t care that none of the other First Year boys greeted him. He had plans to study with Lily Evans tomorrow and for once he couldn’t care less what they thought or didn’t think about him.


End file.
